Part III (一)The Literature of Romanticism 美国文学教材.pptVIP

Works Precaution (1820) The Spy (1821): about the American Revolution, an espionage story, the beginning of historical novels in American literature The Pilot (1824): a sea romance Leatherstocking Tales: frontier stories The Pioneers 1823 4 The Last of the Mohicans 1826 2 The Prairie 1827 5 The Pathfinder 1840 3 The Deerslayer 1841 1 Themes wildness vs civilization; freedom vs law; order vs change; aristocratic vs democrat; natural rights vs legal rights * Part III The Literature of Romanticism Romanticism Rise of Romanticism: appeared in England in the 18th century. A modern term applied to the profound shift in Western attitudes to art and human creativity in the first half of the 19th c. Reaction against the prevailing neoclassical spirit and rationalism during the Age of Reason. General literary characteristics In themes: 1. Moral enthusiasm: passion, emotion, fancy, imagination, etc. as markers of truth. 2. Faith in the value of individualism and intuitive perception. Human nature is of good will. Man can know the world through his own ability/intuition. Common man as a hero. 3. Man’s societies are a source of corruption. Nature was a refuge, a source of goodness, knowledge and spirituality. Nature can punish or reward. Good receives justice. Return to nature as a source of inspiration and wisdom, thus celebration of man’s connection with nature. 4. Mostly reflected the fantastic and thrilling stories taking place long ago and far away, rich in mystic color. 5. Solitude (Escapism) 6. Satisfaction of desire 7. Outcasts 8. Idealist philosophy 9. Delight in self-analysis 10. The sublime, the grotesque, the picturesque, and the beautiful with a touch of strangeness are all valued I. Historical Introduction The end of 18th century through the outbreak of the Civil War 1. The “pioneers” pushing the frontier further west: Individualism, buoyancy and optimism of the frontier and intimacy with the wilderness 2. Predominantly agrarian